How to Diagnose Domainer ADHD

by Peter Askew

I’ve got it. And darn near every domainer I’ve met has some form of it.

Good ole ADHD.

Now, I ain’t horribly afflicted by it. But I can easily say that without it, I woulda failed at domaining 3-6 months in.

Consider these traits:

“Be easily distracted…frequently switch from one activity to another”

Yup, that’s me. Simply replace the word ‘activity’ above with ‘domain name’.

“Have difficulty focusing on one thing”

Bingo. Too many domains. Too little time.

“Become bored with a task following only a few minutes, unless they are doing something enjoyable”

Jackpot. Not so much bored, but impatient as there always seems to be more money made in greener pastures.

“Daydream”

Of course. There’s always a fresh domain dropping, for sale, or just waiting there to be purchased.

“Fidget and squirm in their seats”

During every auction, yes. They ought to add ‘flailing arms’ as well. Oh yeah, and cursing.

The disorder is so spot on, it almost seems tailor made for us. And in most cases, the more aggressive the disorder, the more successful the domainer. Dare I say, unfair advantage?

The trick I’ve found is to hone it. I cast a wide net when I jumped into this game, but focused my ADHD over the years into a few modest buckets. Buckets that allow me to continue both domaining and developing (without burning out or going bankrupt).

And for that, I thank you, my wonderful disorder.

Peter Askew is a contributing writer on DNW, and is right now honing his ADHD on his latest project DudeRanch.com, which launches in March of 2010. You can also follow him on Twitter @searchbound.